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Tyrese Hunter, DJ Wagner, Johnell Davis highlight top available lead guards in transfer portal – 247Sports
There are multiple waves in the college basketball transfer portal. With only 15 days to go before the portal window closes, the sense of urgency to lock down a spot has heightened. It’s starting to simmer on the lead guard market.
Javian McCollum scooped up a likely starting position at Georgia Tech. Illinois filled its lead guard need with Arizona transfer Kylan Boswell. Maryland targeted Ja’Kobi Gillespie early and locked down the Belmont transfer quickly. Kansas State coach Jerome Tang got his next “short king” guard in Michigan transfer Dug McDaniel. Houston and Indiana both addressed their point guard slots with Oklahoma’s Milos Uzan and Washington State’s Myles Rice, respectively.
READ MORE: Highlighting the best transfer portal fits (so far)
Auburn, Missouri and Ohio State needed lead guards, and JP Pegues, Tony Perkins and Meechie Johnson have all hopped on board at those individual spots to fill those voids.
That’s the first wave.
Here comes the second one.
Kentucky’s DJ Wagner and Texas’ Tyrese Hunter are two of the bigger-name, transfer portal entries this week. The teams who missed out on the first group of talented lead guards will hit this second batch with reckless abandon.
RELATED: Intel on AJ Storr, DJ Wagner, Rylan Griffen, Oumar Ballo, Cade Tyson in jam-packed transfer portal notebook
Let’s dive into 12 of the top available lead guards on the market and dissect their games, their recruitments and some of the latest buzz.
The scoop: Johnell ‘Nelly’ Davis is one of the key needle-movers at the top of the transfer portal. Davis is a big-game killer who helped carry FAU to the 2023 Final Four. Davis is the No. 2-rated player in the portal. He has just one more year of eligibility, and Davis is within striking distance of cracking the 2,000-point plateau. The 6-foot-4, 203-pound guard is just a problem for everybody. Davis shot over 41% from 3-point range this past season –– by far a career-best mark. He’s a dangerous midrange sniper, and Dusty May entrusted him with a ton of pick-and-roll usage. He’s become just as dangerous both on or off the rock.
Michigan is certainly a major player for Davis now that May is Ann Arbor’s new head honcho, but the NBA feedback will be key. If Davis returns to school, he’s the ultimate game-changer in the 2024 cycle. No portal guard (so far) is more proven on the big stage.
The scoop: Oklahoma State was mired in the Big 12 cellar all year, but Javon Small continued to impress. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound lead guard is excellent, and it’s no surprise that he’s quickly become one of the top options for guard-needy teams in the transfer portal. Small was one of the top pick-and-roll scorers in college basketball this past season, and he shot over 37% from 3-point range.
After Bryce Thompson went down with a season-ending shoulder injury, Small averaged 17.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists in the final 11 games against loaded Big 12 competition.
East Carolina produced Tristen Newton who turned into an All-American point guard for UConn. Small, another former East Carolina product, hopes to follow those same footsteps.
The scoop: Tyrese Hunter is a free agent again. After his freshman season at Iowa State, Hunter looked poised to be one of the best guards in the country. But it never came together at Texas. Two years later, Hunter is back in the portal looking to get his career back on track.
Good Hunter is fantastic. He can really pressure the basketball and be a downright pest defensively. He shot over 35% from downtown in Big 12 play in both seasons at Texas. But turnovers and inconsistencies plagued his Texas tenure. One night, he’s dropping 30 against Oklahoma in the Texas regular-season finale. Four days later, he doesn’t make a field goal in the Big 12 Tournament against Kansas State.
But Hunter’s talent is still so obvious, and plenty of high-major coaches are expected to dabble in this one.
The scoop: Plenty of freshmen struggled to put up numbers in an ultra-old, college basketball landscape this past season. Kanaan Carlyle was immune to that problem. The top-50 freshman immediately inserted himself as one of the top options in Stanford’s backcourt. Carlyle averaged 11.5 points, 2.7 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game.
The efficiency wasn’t always there, but the upside is obvious. Carlyle is one of the ballyhooed young guards near the top of every transfer portal wishlist.
Carlyle is a complete menace off the bounce, jitterbugging his way across the court and in and out of the lane with ease. He moves defenders, not vice versa. Carlyle’s decision-making has to improve and that will come with time and seasoning. He had a sky-high 22% turnover rate during Pac-12 play. But refining when to uncork his jumper will be a major key. Carlyle’s tape is littered with terrific moves to create space and then tough, low-percentage jumpers. Carlyle is a better shooter than his percentages indicate. He splashed nearly 40% of his 53 catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, but he shot just 10-for-46 (21.7%) on off-the-dribble 3-pointers which sank his overall ratios. He also shot just 46% at the rim. That number has to improve.
But all the tools are there for Carlyle to be a total star one day.
Indiana has jumped to the top of the pack for Carlyle. If Mike Woodson’s latest transfer portal addition (Washington State’s Myles Rice) can create more catch-and-shoot opportunities for its next potential addition (Carlyle), the Hoosiers could be back in business.
The scoop: Mack was one of the top freshmen in the country, averaging 17.2 points, 4.8 assists and 4.0 rebounds for Harvard. The lefty can create his own shot in a hot second and he is a terrific playmaker for others. Mack graded out in the 75th percentile in ball screens, according to Synergy, and he drew 5.0 fouls per 40 minutes. Mack torched high-major teams like Indiana and Boston College in non-conference play. His jumper went awry in Ivy League play, but he still finished over 34% from downtown on high volume while shouldering a huge role for an iffy Harvard offense.
Georgetown has emerged as the leader for Mack in a hotly-contested recruitment. Ed Cooley envisions Mack joining soon-to-be-junior Jayden Epps to form a high-upside backcourt duo of bucket-getters. Mack and Epps don’t have a ton of positional size, but both can absolutely fill it up, and two lead guards is better than one.
The Hoyas have earned multiple crystal balls for Mack’s services.
The scoop: Khalif Battle had a few dates with Eric Musselman’s doghouse, but he showed just how much of a bucket he could be down the stretch. In Arkansas’ final nine games, Battle averaged 26.6 points and shot double-digit free throws in seven of those nine games. That included a 34-point evisceration of Kentucky, a 36-point drubbing of Vanderbilt’s defense and he gave Missouri a 42-piece.
Battle is on the floor to create problems for opposing defenses. He drew 7.3 fouls per 40 minutes in SEC play. That was No. 1 in the league. The 6-foot-5, 185-pound guard is one of the top score-first guards in the portal.
The scoop: Former five-star guard DJ Wagner is back up for grabs. The Kentucky ballyhooed freshman was one of the jewels of John Calipari’s last ‘Cats recruiting class, but he got outshined by Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham.
Wagner was not one of Kentucky’s best three guards, so his playing time dipped even if his spot in the starting lineup was mostly secure. Wagner shot just 47% on 2s and 29% on 3-pointers this past season.
But a fresh start could be all Wagner needs to get back on track in a hurry. The turbo drives were still enticing. His ability to get where he wants to go off the bounce is real. Wagner’s flashes of on-ball defense were also encouraging, and the pedigree is still intact.
Wagner will be a huge candidate for a Year 2 jump if he makes a wise decision in the portal.
The scoop: Sean Pedulla is one of the most proven, known commodities in the transfer portal. The veteran Virginia Tech transfer has averaged over 15 points per game in each of the past two seasons. Pedulla is a career 83% free throw shooter, and he’s knocked down over 35% of his 434 attempted 3-pointers throughout his career. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound guard is just a hooper. He’s tough, reliable and dependable. He’ll rebound well for a guard and is an above-average creator.
Pedulla has the look of a plug-and-play, high-major starter. A return home to Oklahoma is certainly in play, but some Big 12 heavy hitters are circling.
The scoop: When Roddy Gayle is playing with confidence, he’s a productive, two-way guard with a terrific motor. But Gayle’s jumper is the make-or-break aspect of his game. He shot 16-for-39 from downtown in the first two months of the season, but he endured a 2-for-26 slump during the month of January (when the entire Ohio State team collapsed). Gayle got back on track, cracking double figures in 15 of the last 17 games. He can be a secondary creator. He’s a very good rebounding guard. He can get to the foul line at will, and Gayle shot over 60% at the rim. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound guard also has the makeup of a well-rounded defensive ace.
Creighton hosted Gayle for a visit, and another one is on tap at Michigan. Dusty May is a huge player to watch in this one. Gayle may have to cross rivalry lines.
The scoop: Aden Holloway is another former five-star prospect back on the market. He was regarded as one of the top shooters in the country in high school. He showcased a little of that tantalizing upside against Baylor (19 points) and Indiana (24 points) in non-conference play. But Holloway struggled to find his footing during SEC play. He finished with just a 95.6 offensive rating (100 is average), per KenPom and shot just 25% on 80 3-pointers. The more pressing problem was Holloway’s inability to get to the rim against SEC-caliber athletes.
But the 6-foot-1, 178-pound guard is still a big-time shooter who can get better quickly. It just won’t be at Auburn. Michigan, yet again, is another major player in Holloway’s recruitment, but this market could simmer quickly. Alabama is expected to get a visit on Thursday, per Bama247.
Hunter Sallis was a prized recruit who struggled at Gonzaga, portal and re-emerged as a star at Wake Forest. Devin Carter Jr. had a so-so freshman year at South Carolina, hit the portal and turned into the Big East Player of the Year two years later at Providence. Can Holloway follow suit?
The scoop: Arterio Morris was once considered on the inside track for stardom. The former five-star prospect was a big-time get for then-Texas coach Chris Beard in the Class of 2022. He cracked the rotation for Texas’ loaded roster as a true freshman, but he transferred to Kansas in the 2023 portal cycle looking for a bigger role. Morris was expected to be a massive piece for the preseason No. 1-ranked Jayhawks, but he was suspended and later kicked off the team after a rape charge last August. Those charges were dropped last week due to insufficient evidence.
Morris had transferred to Kansas even after a misdemeanor assault charge during his tenure at Texas. Morris entered a no-contest plea and was ordered to pay a $362 fine.
Will Morris get another chance?
The scoop: Jordan Pope was one of the top freshmen in the Pac-12 in 2022-23 before taking a sophomore jump. Pope averaged 17.6 points and 3.4 assists this past season for Oregon State. He shot 37% from 3-point range on 174 attempts.
Pope took his game to new levels against some of the best teams on Oregon State’s slate. He crushed Arizona for 31 points, including a nasty game-winning 3-point bomb from the ocean. Pope gave Nebraska a 25-point showing on just 12 shots.
Pope is a terrific sniper from downtown, and he’s excellent at getting to his pull-up jumper against drop coverage. But he shot just 52% at the rim this past season.
RELATED: Jordan Pope dishes on recruitment
Still, he’s a proven, high-major lead guard with plenty of interest. Pope has visits scheduled with Texas and Texas A&M this week, per 247Sports’ Travis Branham. Rodney Terry’s crew just lost Tyrese Hunter to the transfer portal and Max Abmas is out of eligibility. Pope could be primed for a major role in Texas’ new-look backcourt mix.
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